India is a magical, mystical, mesmerizing, exotic and fascinating country with a rich history and ancient culture that had been on our travel wish list for decades, and it should be on yours, as well. My paternal great grandparents and my maternal great grandmother were from India, so I was excited to see this great land that I have read about since childhood. The thoughts and memories of this incredible journey and country will forever stay fresh in our minds. This India-Travelogue includes posts about the places we visited: Delhi, Agra, Jaipur (The Golden Triangle), Mumbai and Goa. The posts for each is located at the end of this page and within each post are videos and photos.

The diversity of people, language, cuisine and architecture cannot be experienced in one trip. It is quite possible you might leave India with the thought that you will return again, and perhaps, again. Just be mindful that most of the people are conservative in the way they dress, but you will see young women, especially in Mumbai, wearing shorts and dressing very much like Westerners and more upcoming progressive countries. It is interesting to observe the juxtaposition of traditional and modern clothing, as well as, ancient buildings right up against modern skyscrapers in addition to slums right outside the door of luxury hotels. 

From a visual sense, India is a kaleidoscope of color and design, especially in clothing. This particularly pertains to the clothing that women wear. Not only were the clothes incredible, but the use of jewelry and body art enhanced the beauty of all the women we saw. In some instances, what might be considered over the top was, in some sense, still classic. Both in Mumbai and in Jaipur, we saw every color in the spectrum represented in the clothing people wore – in a word, spectacular!

If you visit, immerse yourself in the colors, scents, tastes, and sounds of this enchanting country – the memories will stay with you forever. And don’t be taken aback if people stare at you – it’s not an unfriendly stare, rather, it is one of curiosity. The people are warm and friendly, so reach out and get to know them – they will welcome you with open arms!

Before we share our travelogue of Delhi, our first stop in India, we would like to share some important information that can be helpful in planning your trip to this amazing country. 

We wished we could have spent a month, but work and other demands afforded us only three weeks minus two days of travel to explore the cities we had on our itinerary. 

Some suggestions if you plan to make this trip:

Do the Research: We have done a lot of travelling in our lives and plan to do more, but have never used a travel agent. Being been part of a tour group has never appealed to us; we always travel by ourselves.  Taking this route requires a lot of research, especially those grand trips like Egypt and India, for example. Our beach and golf vacations require less research, and with a cruise, even less. Months were spent researching India – airlines, hotels, sights, transportation within India to different states and, of course, where and what to eat to avoid the infamous Delhi Belly. The only trips booked ahead were, of course, our flights to and from India, as well as, the Mandovi express sleeper train from Mumbai to Goa. The fun part of this independent research is when you discover amazing deals!

Flights to India: Naturally, our first thought was Air India. We would be in India during the ancient Hindu festival of lights, Diwali, and hadn’t thought of the many people who would be travelling to celebrate with families and friends. It was the most painful flight we had even taken in our lives, and we have taken many. Every family had one or two children plus an infant and they all cried on the way there – all 12 hours! At one point, while way up on the sky, we wanted to scream, “Let us out of here”! We didn’t care whether parachutes were available or not – we wanted to jump out the window! We love families, we love children, but this was a difficult flight for us. As with all things, we knew, this too, shall pass and we would eventually land in India.

Airports in India: The modernity and efficiency of these absolutely spectacular, spacious, and dare we say, elegant airports in Delhi and Mumbai caught us by surprise. They have every exclusive shop and designer name you can find in the world. The architecture, art, public lounges, charging stations, the cleanliness, all left us speechless. We decided right then and there that when we returned to New York, we were going to contact the Department of Transportation and tell them to do something about Kennedy and La Guardia airports – they both can do with some serious rehab!

Subways/Trains: The subway system in Delhi and Mumbai also blew us away! The stations are spacious, clean, and the artwork displayed is amazing! We were pleasantly surprised, and again, in comparison to New York, we think the New York City Subways are in need of a serious upgrade. Being always curious about train systems in other countries, we make it a point to ride them. Passengers and their bags go through a security check in the Delhi subway so lines can be long. From our observation, we can’t say it’s a serious check, but the security personnel do go through the motions. Women are in one line and are patted down and screened and the same for men. You must keep an eye on your bag because it can go through the screening device and come out on the other side while you are being patted down in a screened area. If you are with someone, ask that person to keep an eye on your bag, and if not, scramble out and start rushing to make sure no one walks off with it. You can’t get on a train in the underground or subway and not pay, but you can with the elevated trains. We tested it one day and decided not to buy tickets and no one checked. When we questioned fellow passengers, they smiled and said, it’s the honor system, but once in a while the conductor does check. It was not our intention to be dishonest, but we wanted to see how people go about their daily lives.

Taxis/Bicycle Rickshaws/Tuk-Tuks: The tuk-tuks and bicycle rickshaws are fun to get around the cities, so make use of these modes of transport. We had the most hardworking bicycle rickshaw driver in Delhi, Hassan, but you’ll learn more about him on our most fascinating journey through Chandni Chowk in our Delhi Post. The video tells it all! A word of caution, however, be wary of tuk-tuk, bicycle-rickshaw and taxi drivers – they all seem to want to take you a government-owned shopping mall, bazaar or factory. We got sucked into this twice and it took us off our schedule, but on one occasion, we did find some really good bargains at a factory. The drivers and operators most likely get a commission if the tourists purchase anything. 

Safety: There was never a time on our journey where we felt unsafe. We kept our wits about us at all times, but for most of the time, we did not have to watch out backs or bags like in some countries.

Airport Lounges: It would be wise to invest in a program that offers membership to airport lounges especially if you have long layovers and travel frequently.  We have Priority Pass membership to many airport lounges around the world. Starting in New York, we had access to the airport lounge where an assortment of dishes, drinks, and desserts are offered to members without charge. You can sit back in recliners, charge your devices and relax until departure. The television monitors will keep you informed about delays, gate changes and whether your flight is on time. Our membership allowed us to use the lounges in Delhi and Mumbai.

Check the Temperature: Our research showed it was warm in the places we were visiting, but we did take lightweight jackets for our trip back home which was towards the end of November. A lightweight, foldable, down jacket folded into a compact pouch doesn’t take much space.

What to Pack: We read everywhere to pack lightly because you will shop. We shopped alright, but the clothing we usually travel with works well for us. We each had 4 pairs of Northface lightweight, easy to dry pants which you can roll up to knee-high length, or unzip the pant legs to make shorts (for Goa). We each packed five polo shirts and two dressier items for the evening. In Mumbai, we washed some of our clothing at the Four Seasons, and hung them in the extraordinarily large bath on hangers, doors, and door knobs, so we had clean clothing for the rest of the trip. The cost of laundering your clothes in these high-end hotels is astronomical, so just do it yourself and save the money for something worthy – like a good restaurant or shopping. While doing our trip research, there were many suggestions to wear flip-flops throughout India. Since we often venture down off-beaten paths, the chances of stepping into puddles and other stuff were highly possible, so pack good walking shoes and sandals (Teva sandals are great). You can always buy a pair of flip-flops in Goa, if you wish.

Knapsack: We took a medium-size knapsack which had two outside pockets for bottled water with lots of pockets and compartments inside. We suggest keeping a foldable nylon bag that zips up into a pouch in the knapsack to carry the things you buy. 

Water: Do not drink the water anywhere in India, unless it is bottled, even when brushing your teeth.

Food: To avoid Delhi Belly, we made sure that breakfast was included in all of our hotel accommodations. Each day began with a good breakfast before our daily explorations. During the day, if we got hungry and stumbled upon a restaurant that looked clean and safe, we took a chance. Even before we got to India, the decision was made not to eat any street foods. As appetizing as the food looked and as hungry or tempted we were at times, we abstained. We took photos, but did not partake. The only thing we had on the street was fresh coconut – the coconut water was refreshing on a hot day. This decision, we believe, to not eat streets foods kept us healthy throughout the whole trip.

There is so much to see, enjoy and experience throughout India. We think, wistfully, if only we had more time…. So perhaps, at some point in the future, we may be fortunate enough to return.

We’ve covered the basics, so without further ado, let’s begin our journey with Delhi. We hope you will enjoy this travelogue of India!

(Click on the posts below to view Delhi, Agra, Jaipur, Mumbai and Goa.)